


Today was her pride

by FrancescaOwens1



Category: Gentleman Jack (TV)
Genre: Based on a Tumblr Post, F/F, Mentions of other characters - Freeform, Modern AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-26
Updated: 2019-06-26
Packaged: 2020-05-20 09:42:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19374139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FrancescaOwens1/pseuds/FrancescaOwens1
Summary: The Ann(e)s at pride. Mainly Ann walker’s internal p of v. Argus and Anne lister are also there. Based off the tumblr prompt from an anon to @sapphic-ann-walker. Forgive all grammar mistakes, un-checked.‘The Ann(e)s at Pride: Anne wears a rainbow laces in her doc martens and various 'You gave us rights bc we gave you riots' and 'The first pride was a riot' pins, Ann wears multicolour flowers in her hair and a rainbow sundress. Argus has a rainbow scarf tied around his collar. (Aunt Anne sits in a deckchair overlooking the parade under a massive 'I Adore My Lesbian Neices' sign, because obviously Ann is part of the family now). (Ainsworth tries to lead a protest and gets trampled by the parade)’





	Today was her pride

Ann had never been such a mix of emotions. The only time she could remember feeling anything like this was on their wedding day. In the local church with just Anne’s aunt and Marian there as their witnesses. She had been full of nerves, hands shaking as she took Anne’s hand to put the ring on and her voice breaking as she said I do to loving her wife from the rest of their lives.

But today had all the nerves of that and the same underlying excitement. However there was there a feeling she hadn’t expected as she climbed up behind Anne on her bike. The new pink leather jacket Anne had got her for her birthday that year nicely matching her dress and pink ballet flats. 

She did have a pair of trainers packed in her bag but she felt the pink matched the light colours and material of her rainbow coloured dress better so had promised Anne that she would wear them when they joined the parade. As her wife had seemed quite concerned about the quality of her shoes as they eventually got out of the door that morning. They were late but it wasn’t Ann’s fault. She couldn’t be held accountable when her wife looked so damn fine when she saw her. Leading to a ‘quick’ round of love making on Anne’s desk before they left. 

But today Ann, quite against her own expectations, actually felt slightly relieved. 

They lived very busy lives. Her wife was always either at work, doing one of her many hobbies or checking up on her aunt. So they didn’t see or have guests rounds all that much. Only Tib, her wife’s best friend, when she was near Halifax for whatever trip she was on, Elizabeth and the kids during the holidays, or Marian when she dropped in with Thomas after they got back from their honeymoon. So they saw less people that Ann had expected to by the time she turned thirty.

She saw even less of other people that were part of the community. It always made her nervous, meeting other people like them. She was always worried that she’d say the wrong thing and offend someone or people would think she wasn’t gay enough to be there.

She had sworn that she had seen a twinkle of laughter in her wife’s eyes when she finally admitted that out loud. But it was almost unnoticeable beneath the affection that swamped those dark orbs as Anne had simply kissed her cheek and said that she didn’t need to ‘prove’ anything to anyone. That that was what pride was all about, being proud of who you were. Not who you were told to be. And Ann, who had admittedly spent too much of her life adhering to others opinions of her, had really stuck with that sentiment. Whether that meant being a ‘high femme’ lesbian or whichever label Anne had said she might identity with most, of just being herself without a label. 

Now, as they pulled into the street where the parade was coming towards at a relatively slow pace and where Anne’s aunt was waiting with Argus to meet them, she suddenly felt all those emotions hit her at once. 

She hadn’t really taken in her surroundings on the way in. Too busy clinging to her wife’s back. She would never get tired of saying that name about Anne. Her wife. But yes she almost always clung onto Anne whenever they took the bike anywhere, not doubting her wife’s ability to drive it, just the ability of other drivers around them.

The first time they went out like that, was admittedly not longer after their first date. The bike engine had only just started, they hadn’t even started off yet but just the sound had made her hug her arms around the older woman’s back so suddenly she hadn’t realised she’d done it. Only realising when Anne had checked in with her and squeezed one hand to double check.

Now though, she was getting used to it. What she was no where near ready for though, was this parade. 

Looking around herself as they walked over to the cafe where aunt Anne was sat, she took in all the different people around her. It was incredible. All different kinds of people with all different kinds of colours in clothes, hair and accessories. It was like walking into a massive, living, version of her wardrobe at home. 

The thing that stood out the most however was just how happy everyone looked. Couples, friends, and families were all walking together, smiling and laughing as they passed. Waving to everyone as they went, showing off all sizes of flags, banners and merchandise. Even the people seemingly walking alone seemed happy, with wide smiles and happy faces. Ann had never been around such a large amount of happiness and people. It was almost overwhelming her. 

As they got closer, Anne seemed to sense the tension in her frame and slipped her hand down to take her own in it. That made Ann turn to look her, trying but utterly failing to keep the awe out of the look on her face as she met the smile gracing her wife’s perfect face with one of her own. Again failing as she took her wife’s appearance in. 

Her wife very rarely changed how she looked or dressed to fit other people’s perception of her, and Ann was starting to follow her lead on that. Today however, Anne looked like the definition of the word pride.

Her hair was freshly cut for the event. It reached to just below her chin when relaxed and the waves looked more pronounced for it. She was wearing a shirt Ann scarcely her in. It was black except for the cuffs and collar which were rainbow striped and where currently rolled up her arms to highlight the shape of her muscles. The left pocket was covered in pins with sayings like ‘you gave us rights bc we gave you riots' and 'The first pride was a riot'. Her signature black jeans and doc martens were also on. However, today the normally dark red or blue laces were replaced with bright rainbow ones.

Ann wished she could always tell her how good her legs and bum looked in those jeans, with how they highlighted the strong lines to her seemingly perfect body. And she would but her wife wasn’t a fan of being told she was gorgeous too much. So Ann was content to tell her how handsome and dapper she was when her wife was dressed up for events like this. 

Now though she had to focus on other things to get through today. Like how Anne called to Argus the second she saw the big hound laying down by aunt Anne’s feet. 

‘There you are, you big lug, come here’ and he had done just that. Sprinting the short distance to them in a couple of seconds. Jumping his front paws up to Anne’s waist in greeting and only dropping them once she had scratched his head in return.

‘Go say hi’ ann saw her nod towards her as the dog started circling her legs. Though he was too big to be doing so and so kept knocking into her legs whenever he did it.’

Following the direction that the finger Anne was pointing towards her, Argus turned and spotted her. The world seemed to freeze for him in that second as he bolted towards her and barked in greeting once he reached her. His tail wagging so hard it seemed it might fall off. ‘Oh hi Argy’ she laughed as he started rubbing his head against her hand to signal her to start stroking him. 

As she ran her hand through the thick fur along his back, she noticed the rainbow neck scarf tied onto his collar with white text on that read ‘I love my two mums’. She had promised herself she wasn’t going to let her nerves get the better of her today and so the only tears she allowed were happy ones. 

Anne and her aunt had noticed the tears and both met her eyes with a loving smile. The fact of there being two such smiles and not just one reminded Ann of why she she was so happy. She was here, with people like her and she was loved, by her family. Her new, found family. And she was determined to make the most of it.

-  
By the end of the day Ann had brought and got as much rainbow merchandise as she could carry in her bag and Anne could hold of the leftovers. Making her wife look almost funnily out of place. Her free hand holding a packet of rainbow condoms and lube, a rainbow flag and several rainbow striped lollies. She was at peak happiness as she played with her wife’s other hand and kissed her cheek whenever she got the chance. 

The only thing that made her nervous was a number of other women. Some looking like her with a variety of colours and bright eyes who would smile and then blush at her wife whenever they caught her eye and sharp smile. Others were more older or bold. Walking up to Anne with bedroom eyes and wandering hands that would squeeze her arm in temptation when Ann had her back turned to pick up another merchandise piece. Who would only withdraw them when Anne would politely push them off or Ann would turn back and make it clear that her ‘dapper looking companion’ was taken, thank you. 

‘All right, babe’ Anne has started once she had lead them away for yet another admirer that had gone too far in their admiration. ‘I am gonna need that arm back’ she had laughed. The deep sound of which had the jealous look in Ann’s eyes calming down and reassuring her. It didn’t matter how pretty those girls were, her wife was just as devoted to her as she was to her. 

It was silly really, the fact that Anne stayed by her side even when she was at her worst should be proof enough. But it was the fact that she could get so bad that made her nervous. 

None of those half dressed, smiling, beautiful, young women probably got anywhere near that bad at their worst and Ann was constantly aware of that. None of the full figured, seductive women got so nervous some days that they had to cancel dinner plans with some of Anne’s work colleagues. But Ann did. However, looking at her wife, only to find her watching her with all the love in the world shining in her eyes, Ann almost felt stupid for being so possessive. 

Argus was beside himself when they rejoined him and aunt Anne under the ‘I adore my lesbian nieces’ banner she had up over the outdoor table she was sat at in the cafe. He had whined the second they walked off, but Anne had refused to have to watch over him as they walked. Already too stoked in protectiveness from the teasing Tib had given her over facetime the night before. 

‘You want to be careful, Freddie’ the other woman had laughed whilst Anne spoke to her in the living room, with ann’s legs resting over one of her own where they were sat together on the sofa after dinner. ‘You know there will be a bunch of proper bible thumpers there tomorrow, don’t you?’

‘And you know very well that we’re both Christian, Tib’ Anne had began, her tone sounding entirely condescending as she motioned between the two of them. ‘So we’re more than welcoming to other believers’. That was true, despite how much Ann sometimes struggled with religion and how it handled her sexuality, seeing other Christian people in the community always helped her find some reassurance. 

‘You know what I meant’ Ann could practically year the eye roll that had got in response. The other woman’s tone had now changed to matched her wife’s in condensation. ‘Homophobes. Ones that use the bible to justify it’. 

‘Well we’re gonna be just fine’ Anne had announced, leaning back to wrap her arm around the back of the sofa and brushing the tips of her fingers through the strands of Ann’s curls that she could reach, ‘aren’t we, babe?’ She had finished, turning to her.

‘Yeah, of course’ Ann replied quietly, her hand reaching up to grip on Anne’s as if it could keep her safer somehow. It had been one of her main fears about tomorrow. What if those type of people were there. What if he was there.

Back in the present, as she watched Anne walk up to her Aunt and place a gentle kiss on her forehead she heard the older woman’s rant. She got her answer

‘I told Marion. I did’ aunt Anne was waving vaguely in the direction of where her phone now rested and where ann could see the screen showed that had called her younger niece recently. ‘I said I hope the girls aren’t anywhere near that part of the street’. Her hands were waving frantically as she explained her story.

What she was actually referring to was a group of protestors a few blocks away from them which had got trampled by a wave of marchers who had to pass by them to carry on their day. A protest that Ann would learn was led by one reverend Thomas Ainsworth. A protest Ann was grateful she didn’t have to witness. 

‘We weren’t’ anne reassured. Her gaze darting between her aunt and her wife to gage the younger woman’s reaction. Though she seemed slightly off put, Ann still seemed in control of her nerves. Which was a relief.

‘I didn’t want those people to worry Ann. I wondered if he was there with them and I knew he would ruin it for her’ aunt Anne had carried on. Motioning towards her to make Ann come over to her. Which the younger woman willingly did, basking in the mother like affection always she got from her aunt in law. 

‘We didn’t see them’ Anne announces again. Enjoying watching her two favourite people interacting so closely. As always grateful that her aunt had taken so well to her wife, and vice versa. 

‘I was fine.’ Ann told them both. Hoping the sincerity in her voice was acknowledged. ‘I promise’ and the most surprising thing is that she was. Far more so than she imagined she would be. 

She wasn’t about to let anything ruin today. Nothing. Not even one Thomas Ainsworth. Today was her day with her wife to celebrate themselves.

Today was her pride


End file.
